Large Scale Sequencing of Germplasm to Develop Genomic Resources for Soybean Improvement

A significant effort to sequence a large number of soybean germplasm lines in the U.S. through the project titled "Large Scale Sequencing of Germplasm to Develop Genomic Resources for Soybean Improvement", generated genome sequence information for the most diverse soybean lines from the USDA-GRIN germplasm collection. This sequencing project was supported by the United Soybean Board and three private companies: Bayer CropScience, DOW AgroSciences, LLC, and Monsanto. Dr. Henry Nguyen, Division of Plant Sciences, College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources, University of Missouri is the Principal Investigator of this project and Dr. Babu Valliyodan, Nguyen's Laboratory at the University of Missouri is coordinating this research. This is the first large-scale public-private partnership of this magnitude in the soybean genetic research arena. The results of this project will lay the groundwork for future soybean genetics and breeding research.

As part of this project, the southern U.S. soybean cultivar "Lee" (PI 548656) was selected for sequencing to create a second reference genome in soybean. This will complement the first reference genome, "Williams82", that was chosen to represent the northern U.S. germplasm.

The data generated by this project will benefit the soybean community and allow both public and private soybean breeders and researchers to use these resources to improve soybean varieties for U.S. farmers.

Please note that for all of the genome sequences usage restrictions apply until the PI group publishes the first formal description. The Usage Policy can be viewed here directly or in the repositories described below.